The United Way of Central Maryland has honored a labor leader and a mechanical engineer with its two annual awards for lengthy service to improve the lives of fellow citizens.
Glenard S. Middleton Sr. of Baltimore, international vice president of the American Federation of State, County and Municipal Employees, received the Philip H. Van Gelder Award for his "outstanding community service and labor leadership."
Melissa Bennett of Baltimore, owner of Rock Solid Vehicle Products, received the Clementine Peterson Award recognizing her "unique, significant" years of volunteer work on United Way committees.
The awards were made last night at Oriole Park at Camden Yards during the annual appreciation celebration for 2,000 local United Way volunteers. They helped raise and distribute $37.78 million in the 1996 campaign, benefiting more than 600,000 Maryland residents.
The evening also was United Way's annual meeting. Joseph E. (( Blair Jr., chairman of the board of the Baltimore Life Insurance Co., was succeeded as United Way chairman by Benjamin H. Griswold IV, chairman emeritus of Alex. Brown Inc.
William Couper, president of NationsBank in Greater Baltimore, will be the 1997 voluntary campaign chairman, replacing 1996 chairman, Donald Manekin, senior vice president of the Manekin Corp.
The party, including a tour of the ballpark, was the first United Way annual dinner to include families, thus stressing "the whole idea of volunteerism," said Larry Walton, United Way president.
"For years our volunteers came to these dinners solo," he said. "This event allows us to let children see their parents being recognized for community service."
Pub Date: 6/13/97
